“It don’t mean a thing (if it ain’t got that swing).” That’s a saying of trumpeter Bubber Miley. Duke Ellington wrote a jazz standard based on it. Great writing certainly has rhythm and flow. The process of writing should, too. Your goal for every writing session should be to produce enough good writing to » Read More
Category: Better Writing
Taking Stock
The New Year is a great time to take stock of your life and your writing. Here’s how Dan Pink describes this period in his excellent book, When: The Scientific Secrets of Perfect Timing. “The first day of the year is what social scientists call a “temporal landmark.” 15 Just as human beings rely on landmarks to » Read More
5 Ways to Do It Wrong
I tell my clients there’s almost always an array of good solutions to any writing problem. There’s usually many more than one right answer. But there are some very specific ways to get things wrong when you’re writing a book. Here are five of them. Start to prepare to begin to get ready Pondering, planning, or » Read More
The Writer as Action Hero
My friend Jim wanted to be a writer. He took writing courses. He bought books about writing. He planned several projects. The problem was, he never actually wrote anything. You probably know somebody like that. They seem to love everything about writing except the writing itself. Writers who succeed are action heroes. They » Read More
Business Authors: Don’t Write Like a Writer
“If it sounds like writing, I rewrite it.” Elmore Leonard said that in his Ten Rules of Writing. It was so important that Leonard didn’t give it a number. He said it’s the advice that sums up his other rules. Maybe our English teachers convinced us that good writing was fancy. Maybe we think fancy writing will » Read More